Execution Date Set For Man Who Killed Ex-Wife, Daughter
TALLAHASSEE (CBSMiami/NSF) - Florida Death Row inmate Jerry Correll, who was convicted in the 1985 stabbing deaths in Orlando of his ex-wife, their 5-year-old daughter, his ex-mother-in-law and her sister, will be put to death on October 29th.
Governor Rick Scott signed a death warrant in January for Correll, but the execution was put on hold because of a U.S. Supreme Court case about whether a drug used in the lethal-injection process violated the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment.
The case stemmed from Oklahoma, but Florida uses the same drug, midazolam, as part of its lethal-injection process.
The U.S. Supreme Court in June upheld the use of midazolam, but the Florida Supreme Court refused to lift a stay of Correll's execution. Correll, 59, argued that midazolam posed a higher risk to him because of his alleged brain damage and history of drug use.
Orange County Circuit Judge Jenifer Davis held a hearing in August and ruled against Correll.
The Supreme Court upheld Davis' decision Friday and lifted the stay of Correll's execution.
The News Service of Florida contributed to this report.